High school football: Tempo, wide receiver duo has Johnsburg off to 7-0 start

On many plays, Johnsburg quarterback Adam Jayko lines up in the shotgun a few yards behind his center. He surveys the defense. He looks like he’s ready to take the snap.

[KKoontz – For Shaw Media]

Then Jayko pauses.

The quarterback and his receivers all look over to the sideline, where head coach Dan DeBoeuf and his assistants are feverishly sending hand signals to their offense.

It’s similar to what many football fans see on Saturday afternoons in college football, where spread offenses are common. The Skyhawks, who have adopted a spread attack this season, are looking to see how the defense is lining up, and then adjusting the play call based on what they see.

“Last year, teams always changed what they did, as far as front-wise, because of our running game,” DeBoeuf said.

Without record-breaking running back Alex Peete — who now plays at UW-Whitewater — opposing teams know what they’re going to get: a fast tempo and lots of quick passes. The Skyhawks have seen defenses do a lot of different things to try to stop them.

“This year you can do scouting reports and stuff but you don’t know what they’re going to run (defensively) because they’re not going to run their normal stuff,” DeBoeuf said.

[KKoontz – For Shaw Media]

Whatever signals DeBoeuf and his coaches have been sending to Jayko and the offense, they’re working. The Skyhawks are off to a 7-0 start and averaging 49.1 points per game.

“Usually it’s up to our coaches, what they see,” wide receiver Brody Frazier said. “They put us in the best position to make plays.”

Through seven weeks, the top two wide receivers in the McHenry County area both wear gold and blue.
Frazier has caught 36 passes for 837 yards and 13 touchdowns. Teammate Nico LoDolce has caught 47 passes for 623 yards and six touchdowns. The duo is first and second, respectively, in receiving yards in the area.

Jayko leads the area in passing, with 1,897 passing yards, 27 touchdowns and two interceptions. Jayko rarely goes over to the sideline for a play call. It’s all communicated through hand signals.

In last week’s 42-20 win over Woodstock — in which Jayko attempted 47 passes — Johnsburg gave the Blue Streaks’ defense all it could handle.

[KKoontz – For Shaw Media]

“They make you prepare for a lot of formations and schemes,” Woodstock coach Tommy Thompson said. “They do a lot of things. Halfback passes, reverses. Jayko gets the ball out quick. They adjust to the defense.”

Frazier (pictured above) started at cornerback last year, but made only six catches for the offense all season. He has emerged as one of the Skyhawks’ top threats.

“It’s been really nice to see Brody blossom as a player,” DeBoeuf said. “It’s just a confidence thing. And to play both ways. For him to have the confidence to go out there and play fast on both sides of the ball is pretty awesome.”

DeBoeuf said Frazier’s confidence on the offensive side has grown every week.

[KKoontz – For Shaw Media]

LoDolce (pictured above) has been one of the area’s best receivers over the past couple of seasons. In 2016, he caught 62 passes for 945 yards and 12 touchdowns. He has a chance to match or surpass those numbers, especially if the Skyhawks go on another deep playoff run.

“I love how we sling the ball like 40 times a game,” LoDolce said. “I love the fast tempo and I love when guys are standing across from us tired. It give us a huge advantage.”

LoDolce said the Skyhawks have really focused on conditioning in practice.

“Obviously we work our butts off to be able to run the no-huddle offense,” LoDolce said.
So far the work is paying off.